IDAHO : Rape/Molestation Statutes of Limitation
Rape is defined as the penetration, however slight, of the oral, anal or vaginal opening with the perpetrator's penis accomplished with a female under either of the following circumstances:
1. Where the female is under the age of eighteen (18) years.
2. Where she is incapable, through any unsoundness of mind, whether temporary or permanent, of giving legal consent.
3. Where she resists but her resistance is overcome by force or violence.
4. Where she is prevented from resistance by threats of immediate and great bodily harm, accompanied by apparent power of execution; or by any intoxicating, narcotic, or anesthetic substance administered by or with the privity of the accused.
5. Where she is at the time unconscious of the nature of the act, and this is known to the accused.
6. Where she submits under the belief that the person committing the act is her husband, and the belief is induced by artifice, pretense or concealment practiced by the accused, with intent to induce such belief.
7. Where she submits under the belief, instilled by the actor, that is she does not submit, the actor will cause physical harm to some person in the future; or cause damage to property; or engage in other conduct constituting a crime; or accuse any person of a crime or cause criminal charges to be instituted against her, or expose a secret or publicize an asserted fact, whether true or false, tending to subject any person to hatred, contempt, or ridicule.
It is a felony for any person eighteen (18) years of age or older, with the intent to gratify the lust, passions, or sexual desire of the actor, minor child or third party, to:
1. solicit a minor child under the age of sixteen (16) years to participate in a sexual act, or
2. cause or have sexual contact with such minor child, not amounting to lewd conduct as defined in section 18-1508, Idaho Code, or
3. make any photographic or electronic recording of such minor child.
There is no statute of limitations for rape in the state of Idaho.
Bob rapes Jane. She is too frightened to report the crime at first, but as there is no statute of limitations, she can file charges against Bob at any time.
The statute of limitations for child abuse in Idaho is within five years of reaching the age of majority (18).
Bob abused Jane when she was 14 years old. Jane kept it a secret until she was 20, when she finally reported it. As a resident of Idaho, she could have waited until five years after she turned 18 years old (23 years old) to seek charges against Bob.
A new amendment added to Idaho code in April of 2007 states that a victim may also have five (5) years after the reasonable discovery of the abuse and the causal relationship between the abuse and injuries suffered by the victim. (This is only applicable to cases occuring on or after July 1, 1989).
Bob abused Jane when she was 8 years old. She blocks out the memory of what Bob did yet continues to have problems throughout childhood - nightmares, poor performance in school, and trouble trusting adults (especially males). This continues all the way up until she turns 24, by which it's too late to pursue charges against Bob (5 years after reaching the age of majority). Jane then goes to a therapist, and they eventually discover that Jane has blocked out the abuse in her past, which is the underlying cause of her previously unexplained problems. Because she has just discovered this abuse, Jane now has five (5) years in which to pursue charges against Bob, with evidence from her therapist that this abuse was a recent discovery.
.